Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1887-06-27

Great object of Preaching-The Music
and Services of the Church.
Especial Correspondence
BROOKLYN, June II.
DIR. Talmage's house is at the corner of
DeKalb avenue and South Oxford street. Ii
is four story and basement brown stone
front edifice, the duplicate of a dozen or
more houses in a row with it, only that it has
little strip of green on the northwest and
a charming view of Washington park from
the DeKalb street windows. Clingng, lux
uriant vines creep over the building, a bird
sings in a cage at an open window and striped
awnings futter in the sun on the South Ok
ford front. A low stone and iron fence pro.
tects the strip of green and circles round to
the balustrades of the broad brown stone
steps. DR.. Talmage Is the owner of the
property, and has occupied it for the past
eleven years in a comfortable, transformations
way, here as in his ministerial work a man OF
the people
One would hardly, on first view, associate
Dr. Talmage with the ministry, and never
with its conventional types. There is not t
formal, orthodox line in his shrewd, kindly
face, nor a theological curve i'll his raiment.
He might be taken for a farmer, physician,
lawyer, author, banker or merchant yet his
personality is most unique With shoulders
slightly dropping, in a dark, plain suit, turn
down collar and black bow, hair combed
across, his eyes twinkling under shaggy eye
brows and right hand outstretched, he walked
into the parlor of the house have described
and greeted me with a hearty allow are
yous' The great preachers greeting is al
ways cordial to strangers and friends alike.
In short time Mrs. Talmage dropped i'm as
informally as her husband had done. She
must be model minister's wife, thought
cheerful, kindly and considerable to all about
her. Though she had just come i'm from the
street and her quiet. neat fitting costume was
well adapted thereto, it occurred to me that
most ministers wives gave more attention to
gaudy apparel than pleasant, matronly Mrs.
Talmage. The lady may be 40 years old, but
does not look it. The doctor, as he has ex-
pressed it, is "16, so far as my feelings CO. but
the records make me S." DIR. Tamage's
eldest daughter is married and living in
Brooklyn. He has five other children living,
one dead His only son is a student in
Williams college
Dr. Ianaage usually devotes Tuesdays and
Wednesdays to the preparation of his SER
mons, and the balance of the week is divided
up between the multifarious duties of pastoral
work ard private business As his church
be made of the vast duties devolving upon
the pastor. Then he lectures about eighty
times year and is called upon to speak a,
many meetings of secular character
l asked Mr. Talmage to give me his mair
idea of preaching and the services of thu
church.
"a have just one idea in preaching, and hay,
had that in mind for twenty-five years." thu
doctor replied; "it is helpfuhess. Every MAI
in This world who is not a fool needs help H,
needs it because of domestic troubles, physi
cal ailments, depression from overwork, anC
a thousand other things. 1 start out with
that idea always in the preparation and de
livery of sermons, and have found pee ale vii
come where they can get that help. there il
a great sigh going up from the world, and tn
preacher should hear that sigh.
"Ths conventionalities of the church ant
of society are always killing. Naturalnes
S simplicity. There should be nothing in
church to make a man unnatural. | dom
believe i'll putting on Sunday face to con
form with Sunday dress. An ice house is
good thing, but people won't go there t,
spend an evening.
Il believe in congregational singing Their
is nothing in the world can take the place o
that. Everybody, whether religious or not
ASS1o AIhc aoitEo oOiiltthllS JOIllilB ii
public exercises if they attend and have
chance. The singing of our congregation
to me as inspiring as the boom of cannon t.
the soldier. But believe in music as fin
art too, and seek to make efficient use of i
through our boy choir of the morning servic
and by occasionally employing the best solo
lists. Musical people cannot criticise goot
congregational singing. The sweep and rol
of thousands of voices in the grand old hymn
cur fathers sang is beyond criticism. A mid
die ground is highly Objectionable Dreary
draggy music is insufferable We wer
greatly criticised for introducing cornet t
lead our congregation, you remember. 1t
use has made our music what it is"
"What of tue churches of the future, DR.
Talmagem
81 think the boundary lines between Chris
tians are rapidly crumbling away The
don't amount to anything. The great mas
of Christian people don't care a snap of tn
finger about sect divisions. / have neve
been able to get up any sectarian enthusiasm
tried to cultivate it a good many years, bu
had to give it up"
"What can you say about the work O
Sunday schoolss"
81 think the international series of Sunda'
school lessons has brought about a wide
study of the Bible than formerly, but on
Sunday schools are deficient in what the
were not deficient forty years ago. Then til
Bible was committed to memory; now it
not. When l was boy would sometime
recite fifteen chapters verbatim. In conse
quence misquotation is to me as the diScor,
is to the musician. To the Christian | thin!
this familiarity with Scripture Invaluable"
~
More people go to church now than eve
before, the world over, DR.. Talmage thinks
He says $50 young men connected them
selves with his church last winter. l aske,
him if he would object to speaking about tn
charge that he used the dramatic art in hi
preaching. The doctors long lips parted in
smile.
a never studied dramatic art" he said
"and have not been inside theatre NOR
than three or four times in my life, so cam
say what there is in this talk about my dra
matte preaching. However, the most in
tensely dramatic literature the world ha
ever known is the Bible, and the dramati
element in human nature is divinely i'm
planted. A great many actors and actresse
come to my church. l am glad of it.
hope they will continue to come"
y.